Fate (PIPABETH FF) ✔️

If Only I Could Die of Embarrassment

A N N A B E T H

I walked out of the cabin, Piper trailing behind me swiftly. I saw her in the corner of my eye, and I ran a hand through my ponytail inside in a slight daze. I noticed that Piper was looking at the ground, kicking up dirt as she walked, most likely to distract herself. Or maybe it was her own strange way of quelling her thoughts while she was walking, I pondered. I groaned quietly. Or maybe she's thinking about the stupid thing I did, I thought. 

Suddenly I saw someone point to me and whisper in a not so subtle way. I squinted at their direction then looked away, internally cursing. I couldn't distinguish the person clearly, but judging on their slim figure silhouetted in the dim sky, I could tell it was a girl. And girls were especially rough with topics spread by word of mouth. I walked past her, cheeks burning, and looked down at my feet while heading to the strawberry fields. At least not a lot of people would be there. Would there? If they were to gossip about me and make sure I wouldn't hear, then, well, most likely.

I snuck a quick glance behind me and saw Piper a few yards away from me, deep in thought. She was biting her lip and her eyes, again, shifted to blue in a way that I couldn't figure out. Maybe one day.

I walked into the field, scanning the bushes. They already had little specks of red on them, as radiant as rubies with in deep contrast with the sharp spring green leaves that surrounded them. I smiled lightly before taking a deep breath, drawing in the beauty that the fields held.

"...And did you hear what happened in the North Woods?... Yeah, that." 

The peace that I had been feeling washed away as quickly as it had accumulated. Seriously, how did Drew get information along so quickly? I glared at nothing in particular, frustration prickling at the edges of my mind. Please, not now...

I turned a corner and stopped abruptly. I'd found a small patch of ground that was highlighted by the dim light and I sat down in it cross-legged, sighing as I did so. I looked behind me and saw Piper, who was twiddling her thumbs and staying at least two yards away. I turned my gaze away.

After two awkward minutes, Piper spoke up. "Annabeth?" she began, breaking the silence. I grimaced. "Yes?"

"Why'd you do that back there? You know, why'd you kiss me?"

The dreaded question. I swallowed. "Uh, well..."

"Come on, Annabeth, you can tell me." she said, her voice softening.

Gods. How am I supposed to say no to that?

"Fine," I groaned, hating how thick the atmosphere suddenly felt.  "I..." I trailed off as I thought carefull about my next words. "I think, maybe, that... maybe I got a little jealous." I blinked rapidly. "I don't really know where I'm going with this, so just bear with me here, Piper. I'm trying my best." 

She nodded as she approached me, sitting cross-legged across from me. I sat in the light, but she sat in the dark– the area just past the light and where it fell. She didn't seem to mind or notice, though, so I supposed that it was alright. "I'll try, Annabeth. You're pretty good with words in your own way, too, so it shouldn't be that hard." Piper chuckled to herself. "You could probably charmspeak me in some logical way, I'm sure." 

I laughed, but it was uneasy. "Okay, um... I'm sorry for earlier, by the way, Piper. Yeah, I was a little jealous earlier because..." I shifted in my spot. "I guess I was a little jealous of Percy. Or maybe Jason. You saw how much they trusted and love each other, didn't you?" I looked down at the ground, subconsciously counting the pebbles that lined the dirt. "I know you did."

Piper cleared her throat. "I guess, yeah." She sounded a little uncomfortable, but I decided that was most likely because they were our boyfriends, and, frankly, it was a little weird to think that they'd love anyone else besides, well, us. But look at where we were now. Fate was a strange thing, wasn't it?